Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

lewis 3i. cs-rist. proprietor. | A11 Inkjjcitknt Jfamilj Utfospsjjtr: Jfor tjjc promotion: of tjjc political, Social, Agricultural anb Commercial. Interests of % Soutlj. |terms---$3.00 a year, in advance. "VOL. 19. . YORKYILLE, S. C., THURSDAY, ATTG-TJST 14, 1873. ISTO. 33. lite ?cHce. MISTAKEN IDENTITY. The landlord of the Thorold Arms was one J evening talking to his friend the station-mas-' ter, on the platform of the Beaglescombe station, when the last train from Wolverhampton came in. Seldom more than two or j three persons got out here, and most frequent-, ly none at all; and if the landlord of the Thorold Arms had depended on the custom- j ers which the railway brought him for support, his income would have been a very ' meagre one indeed. Rather to his surprise, on the evening in question, a well-dressed, j good-looking young man got out of a carriage, dragging after him a portmanteau, and was left by the departing train enquiring of one | of the porters if he could get comfortable ac- J comraodations at the hotel opposite. On the j porter answering in the affirmative, he was colu 10 carry me porimameau uuiuss. . : On the return of the porter to the station, he told the station-master and his friend that j the name of the stranger just arrived was j Jesse Durand?he had seen the name en-; graved on a brass plate, beneath the handle. ' When the landlord went over to the house, i his guest had already been shown into a sit-; ting room, and had ordered his dinner. He j did not see him again that evening; but he j heard his bell ring repeatedly, and the waiter , who answered it came to the bar for sundry I things, which were charged to Mr. Durand's i -account. Between eleven and twelve o'clock, i the house was closed for the night. The next morning there was a rumor in ! Beaglescombe, that Thorald, of Laverstock j Grange, had been found dead in his bed. ' Later in the day everybody knew this to be a I fact, and that a London doctor had been tele- | graphed for by Dr. Balder, the family medical attendant, which at once gave rise to sur-1 mises that there was something suspicious in i the manner of his death. After the two doc- j tors had had a consultation, the constable at Beaglescombe, who had been directed to summon the jury for the inquest, was told by I them to examine the doors and windows, and 1 by degrees it became generally reported that: Mr. Thorald had been murdered. But this . was not all; his daughter, a well-grown woman, i though scarcely seventeen years of age, had disappeared, without leaving a trace to show j where she had gone, and had taken nothing I with her but the clothes she had worn on the j preceding day; even the hat she was in the j habit of wearing lay on the floor of the hall.! The constable examined the doors and win- j dows, but could not detect any signs of a vio- j lent entry having been made into the house, j Notice was sent to the nearest country police | station by the doctor, that he believed Mr. i Thorold had been killed, and that his daugh- J toi? moo miocinrr TKio cnnorintfnrlpnf'. llSlRtilv : called in the constables on duty, and made enquiries of them if they had seen auybody about the Grange or near it on the night in question. The only one among them who could answer iu the affirmative was a man named Wright. He said that between five and six o'clock in the morning he had met a young gentleman about three miles from the Grange, who told him that he had come from Wolverharaptou the day before, and had been to Seftou to stay the night with a friend who was in trouble, and that he intended going back to Wolverhampton by the morning express from Beaglescombe. It was not daylight, but he had an opportunity of distinctly seeing his face by the light of the lantern he turned upon him. He also noticed that he j seemed very much startled and frightened, but he did not attach any importance to that,:' because people generally looked alarmed ; when the light was flashed upon them so un-1 expectedly. Besides, he had after this request-' ed a light for a cigar, which he took from the ; lamp, the light of which shone over the great-; er part of his white face while he was kindling it. The description he gave of this individual was so minute as to prove that he had takeu as perfect note of the appearance of the now suspected person as he represented. He was j at once despatched to Beaglescombe, to ascer- j tain if the man he spoke of had left that sta-j tiou. The station-master replied in the neg- | ative, as far as he could judge by the descrip-j tion ; the only persons who had left the station ' that morning were two gentlemen who had come in from Lempter Park, and a man who told the porter to carry their luggage to the van, and said he was their valet. The conversation then turned on the supposed raur-j - der 01 Mr. ihorold, and the mysterious disappearance of his daughter, without taking her jewelry or anything else belonging to her; and while they were talking over these matters, the porter who had carried Mr. Durand's portmanteau to the hotel, and who had been listening to what was said, suddenly interrupt-; ed the conversation by saying: "I should ! think, from the description the constable has ; given, that the man he met must be very like j the gentleman whose luggage I took over to J the hotel yesterday." The station-master agreed with him in this ! opinion, though he had not taken sufficient notice to be very positive ; but this was quite enough for the constable, at such an exciting time ; he went straight across to the hotel, and asked to see the gentleman who was stopping there. On being shown into Mr. Durand's sittingroom, he found that gentleman in the act of taking off his overcoat, having just returned from a walk he had taken to an inn, about two miles from the station, on the road lead-! ing to WestTeynham, where it turned out he ; had merely called to drink a glass of ale, and j had asked no questions, except one or two , which had arisen incidentally out of the com- j plaints made by the landlord respecting the want of custom. The instant he saw him, the 1 constable said, "I beg your pardon, sir, but an | unpleasant affair happened last night, not far j from where I met you, and I must ask you to \ come with me to the station." "Where you met me!" exclaimed Mr. I)urand. "Why, I never left this house from yesterday evening until less than two hours ago." "Well, sir, I know better. But, if you didn't, you can easily get the landlord and servants" to come to the station and prove it.; Will yon order a carriage ? People won't see you then, and it will hold the landlord and the chambermaid, too." His prisoner became verv much agitated, and was scarcely able to articulate the order ' that a carriage should be got ready at once. | The landlord consented to accompany his guest willingly enough, to depose that he had not left the hotel from the preceding night until the time he had stated ; and all three were driveu out to the station-house. Here r in the meantime a young man and woman had come in to relate that a little before dusk the evening before, the young woman, while ! walking up and down a lane outside the rails which inclosed the grounds belonging to the ' Grange, was spoken to by a young gentleman, ] who asked her the name of the person who owned the house he could see through the trees, and if the family who occupied it were numerous. While he was speaking to her, her sweetheart joined them ; and as the latter did not like to see a stranger speaking to the young woman, he had taken particular notice of him, so that he would know him again in an instant. Their names and addresses were written down, and a brief note of their statement; and they were in the act of leaving the station, when the carriage drove up, contain-1 ing Mr. Durand, the landlord of the Thorold ' Arms, and the policeman. They stopped to : t< see these get out of the carriage, and, on see- J tl ing Mr. Durand, theysimultaneously exclaim-j si ed that he was the man they met the evening j o before, near the Grange. This Durand de-1 s< nied; but they were so positive that their as-1 o sertion, taken in conjunction with that of the h policeman, was considered by the superinten- si dent to justify him in retaining the prisoner j tl in custody, notwithstanding his denials, and j ii the support they received from the landlord. I o Not to repeat the same thing twice over, j 1 I may pass by the other circumstances which j w were discovered, which left no doubt that Mr.: b Thorold had been murdered, merely stating I T that the coroner's jury, after the numerous ad-1 ? journments which is common with them when ! d they get an exciting case, agreed to a verdict' ^ of Willful Murder against Jesse Durand, and i d he was committed, to take his trial at the as-! 01 ino ! IS The statement made at the trial by the j ? counsel for the prosecution, and confirmed by ? the evidence, was substantially as follows: . j On the day previous to his death, Mr.; jj Thorold had visited several of his tenants, as |},( was his custom once every year previous to <p receiving their rents, to examine for himself w what repairs were required ; and among other <p places he used to visit on the same day was a ^ hamlet on an estate he had about fifteen miles ! <p from the Grange. It had been his practice j j,, for several years, when visiting this hamlet,; to spend the evening and night with an old ! tj. clergyman there, who held the post of chap- ! lain to the Thorold family, for which he re- V( ceived a yearly stipend of ?100, though it' was many years since he had been called upon j to perform any duties in return. Instead of j doing so on this occasion, Mr. Thorold re- j. turned home after calling on the tenants on ^ the home estate, and told the bailiff, as he ; { was leaving him, that he should put off his visit to the other estate till the weather was more settled. This was the last business he j transacted. The next morning he was found, j at the early hour at which bis servant was ac- j . customed to take him his water for shaving, j lying on his bed, dead, but partly dressed ; j 1 the appearance of his bed, however, showed t( that it had been lain in. The medical man who arrived shortly afterward pronounced (j that his death had been caused by the inhala- \ tion of chloroform ; but this was not till after ^ the discovery, made by a housemaid, of a handkerchief belouging to Miss Thorold, j ^ which was still damp, and emitted a peculiar -J l:_U i * ! Vl UUUT, WiUUIl lie Ut uuee icuugui^cu tu uc mat ; of chloroform. This was lying beside an . easy chair in Miss Thorold's bedroom ; and no mention would have been made of it by ^ the woman who picked it up, if it had not; been for the fact that in trying to recognize i the scent which issued from it she had fallen j j on the floor insensible. From the position of' ^ the bedclothes beneath the body, the medical \ ^ man (who seems to have been unusually obser- j vant in his search for a little evidence which j ( might assist him in forming an opinion as to | j the circumstances of the death) came to the j conclusion that the deceased must have been j a placed on the edge of the bed by some per- j son who had not strength to lay him completely on it, or whose strength had been ex- j jj hausted on reaching it, and who had there-! ^ fore been obliged to go round to th.c opposite i tj side and drag the body on far enough to in- . duce a careless observer to suppose that the deceased had sat upon itand then fallen back- j ward. That the deceased bad not voluntarily inhaled the stupefying vapor was shown by the absence of any bottle containing it, or j anything saturated with it in his bedroom ; j aj while the fact that it was the agent used in i ^ producing his death was proved at the post j gv mortem examination, the lungs, on slight pres-! ^ sure, giving forth a distinct smell of chloro-1 | form. Thus, it having been established that j Mr. Thorold had been killed by means of" j chloroform, the next thing to be discovered, j jn was by whom it had been administered. There | was another mystery in the case, too, which j greatly intensified the interest felt in the trial, J ?j and this was the disappearance of MissThor- j . old, though the most diligent enquiries and j1E search had been made in every quarter where | it was thought possible information could be ! j11 got concerning her. ; ^ The evidence to prove Durand to be the j j) murderer was very strong. There was the > jj evidence of the policeman, who had an op-1 p( Dortunitv of scauniner his features under cir-! fi cumstances when the image is imprinted on w the memory in the most durable manner; that m is to say, when the attention is thoroughly awakened to the contemplation of an object which jn is alone perceptible to the eye, from the sur- te rounding objects being concealed by darkness, h, Not only that, but he declared that if he had ! tv not seen his face he could have sworn to his ! identity by thesound of his voice. This seems :u to prove his presence in the Grange at an jn early hour in the morning after the commis- ra sion of the crime. Moreover, it was proved te that no stranger had been in Sefton on the 1 0j previous evening; and, from the smallness of: ai that place, not even a dog could have traversed i u. it without exciting remark. The evidence of the man and woman who met him at dusk the , preceeding evening near the Grange, and an- ; swered the numerous questions concerning the family who occupied it, and who both swore unhesitatingly that he was the same individ- j ual, identifying him, like the policeman, by | w his features and voice, was another link in | e: the chain of identification. But the strongest, proof of all against him, at this stage of the case, was supplied by one Stephen Heather, S(? the bailiff's son. This witness clearly gave his evidence under the influence of conflicting ^ emotions, the effect of which, by the time the ai assizes were held, had reduced him to a mere sc shadow of what he had been. lie stated that, tc having been in the habit of doing little ser- l1' vices for Miss Thorold from her childhood? j such as rearing young birds' for her, rabbits, ; as and other animals she was in the habit of ma- j CI king pets of?an intimacy had established it-! f5 self between them, which had grown stronger J1'1 as they grew older, until it came to pass that, j11 after it was supposed she had retired for the1 night, he used occasionally, at her request, to ^ll come down to the house and bring a short m ladder from the garden, which he placed be- a neath the window, and by means of which she 11 ] descended into the park, he then concealing j a it in the shrubs until she was ready to return. w When this had occurred several times he no i w longer waited for an invitation from her, but . a came as often as he dared, sometimes seeing ^ her and sometimes not. Late on the evening preceding the murder he weut down to the I al house with the determination of seeing Miss j Ul Thorold, if possible, who had only returned j from Scarborough a few days previously, from I v a visit to some relatives, and who, lie thought,; in had tried to avoid him since her return. lie j vi waited till he saw her enter her bedroom, and p: for a few minutes afterwards, to give time for tn any servant who may have entered with her A to withdraw ; he then informed her of his pros- In ence by the usual signal. Instantly the light p' was extinguished; and a moment afterward tl she opened the window, and entreated him to In go away for a while, but to leave the ladder b< under the Bell Fir (a tree to which that name ; X was given on account of its shape, ) and not to ' c< come back unless he saw a light in her room, ol He took up the ladder and carried it to the In tree, where he thrust it among the branches,, u: and was walking away, when, just as he turned r; round the fir, he almost ran against a gentle- X man whose face he could see quite plainly in In the moonlight, the place where they met be- tl ing just outside the shadow cast by the house, i o Thinking from his appearance that he must be tl a visitor staying in the house, and knowing j o that be himself had no business there, he has-1 si 3iictl away ; "but if," he said, "I had not seen 1 liat person again for a number of years, I : f liould have remembered him ; it was the pris- j 1 ner who stands there." Heather retired t )mc distance, and sat down under the shad- j ( w of a tree, where he waited three or four i ours, watching for the light. And at last he t iw a light in a room which he would have t lought was hers, but that it had one window i a i it. The light disappeared after a minute 1 ? r two, but almost directly it shone in Miss | > 'horold's room. He distinctly saw a shadow, j c hich he believed to be that of a man, on the j ? Iind, which he supposed to be that of Mr.. c 'horold, and part of the shadow of a second . c gure, which he supposed was that of his j [ aughter, which came behind the first, when | v ? ? i i _ j iL _ _i i ! 7 le Jignt was lurnea rouna nnu trie Bimuuna , * isappeared. Feeling sure that this could not j 1 e the signal which Miss Thorold had prom- j r ed him, he hesitated to approach the house, ; J Ithough greatly tempted to do so ; but he I i iared that, it'seen by anybody, it might cause j t is father to be dismissed from his situation 1 5 bailiff and be the ruin of his family. He j \ ngered, accordingly, but a few minutes after j j e had seen the light disappear from Miss j liorold's room and reiippear in that from j s hence it had started, and then went home, r he next morning he heard of Mr. Thorold's | i sath and of his daughter's disappearance. I 1 he ladder he found under the tree where he 1 ad placed it, from whence he removed it to I c le garden. Had Heather made the whole of! r lis statement at the inquest, it is presumable j r lat he would have become an object of gra- r er suspicion than Durand. i s Among the articles found in Durand's port-1 lanteau were several letters enclosed in an } astic band. The style indicated that they 1 ad been written by a woman, and one in the v abit of expressing her feelings without re-'s :rve; but the handwriting was to all appear-1 v nee that of a man. The envelopes in which jc icy had been enclosed originally were mis- je ng, and there was no expression in either of j j; lem, with one exception, which could point * i the writer; but this was thought signifi-!1 int. It ran thus: "Beaglescorabe is the 8 earest station, but it would be more prudent 't ) go to the next beyond and return by way i * f Beaglescombe, where, if you love me as j j early as you affirm you do, I should think ( ^ ou might remain for a few days. There is a ;c ice quiet inn I have often passed between j1 le station and "West Tennyham, where I 1 lould think you could live a little while ;' ery comfortably." These letters were shown ^ y the police superintendent to persons who c new Miss Thorold's writing, but these de ied that they had ever seen such writing be- 1 ire. However, the post-mistress at Seftou, 1 liich was the nearest village to the Grange, 8 lentified the handwriting as being the same c le had seen on one or two letters every day 1 ir some days before Mr. Thorold's murder. * unic of them, she could remember, were ad- * resscd to Scarborough, and she thought she I v >u Id remember the name of Wolverhampton, j c Iso, but was not sure. She had several times ondered who it could be who wrote in such ' curious hand, but had come to the conclu- 8 on at last that it must be some gentleman j r ho was at the Grange. On Heather conclu- [ ing his evidence, one of the letters was placed 8 i his hands, and he was asked if he knew le writing. He looked as if he were about j1 i faint when he first saw it, but after reading f1 few lines he became reassured, and said, 1 "ter a good deal of hesitation, that Miss s horold sometimes wrote in that hand. Being iked if he had received any letters from her ? i similar handwriting, he admitted he had ; fid, being further pressed as to whether he ; 1 id kept any of those letters, he at last an- v vered in the negative. Being asked if he j ? new where she wrote those letters, since none j 8 * the servants had ever seen her write in ' icli an unladylike hand, he answered that he j s jlieved she wrote them in the summer-house, 1 i the shrubbery. ! F These letters told heavily against the pris-1 E ler, otherwise the evidence in his favor was | 8 most equal to that against him. He denied , i the most solemn manner that he had ever en Miss Thorold, or heard her name before ! f is apprehension on the charge of murdering i j1 sr father. That his motive in coming to 1 eaglescome had nothing to do with that fam- c y, though he declined to say what that mo- 11 ve was. He also refused to account for his F Dssession of the letters, though he affirmed j ley had not been addressed to him. Neither !. ould he then, or afterward, give any infor- i11 ation as to who he was, nor could anything j 11 i discovered respecting him. The evidence j v i his favor was that of the people at the ho-1 0 1; all of whom swore that he never left the j 8 >use from the time he entered it until about vo hours before the policeman took him away, i .1 - o P . 1 ? !.! iL!. i a i me iace 01 evidence so positive as tins, me . ry would not have hesitated to acquit him, 1 i the belief that it was a remarkable case of n istaken identity, had it not been for the let- i v rs. At the conclusion of the examination | ? 'the witnesses, it was so late that the judge I inounced his intentiou to defer the summing ! 8 } till the following morning. j jj He had not begun the summing up when ; ? le counsel for the prosecution rose and said 1 c lat he had some additional evidence to offer; hich had come to light since the court had I f( >se the preceding evening. The evidence ; as that of n policeman, who after Heather's i ^ camination had been despatched to make a S( arch in the Summer-house where he had sta- j 0 d Miss Thorold wrote her letters. The1 S( arch was not without result. On lowering | j, le of the back shutters, two or three sheets 1 0 'blotting paper were found ; and scattered i n nong the mass of laurels and other shrubs i a ime very small pieces of paper, which proved : t] i be a part of an envelope. These bits of j e iper were arranged, and it was then seen v iat the hand-writing on them was the same ! c > that of the letters found among the prison- ^ 's luggage;mor was this the most important v irt of the discovery, for it turned out that i ic letters written formed the greater part of > ? ic prisoner's name. Durand, on hearing; | lis, showed great emotion, and every eye was n irncd upon him to see if he were goiug to j akc any observation ; hut he did not utter j word. The judge then proceeded to sum v l>; and it was evident that he, and the jury j n so, were much relieved by the discovery ; ^ hich had been made. The verdict was given j t( ithout even that hesitation which juries usu-; 0 ly consider it decent to affect even when ^ ley have thoroughly made up their minds 1 j, afore the close of the trial ; it was "Guilty !" j ? id he was sentenced to be executed in the j ^ siial form. \ n Immediately after the conviction he was ii isitcd by the most influential persons in the j t eighborhood, all of whom urged him to re-1 eal what had become of Miss Thorold ; and v roinised, if he would do that, they would g :o flinii- iitmnst mirlpnvnrc tn unvp liia lifr. t .t first he received thera with politeness, but; k e eventually became so weary of their im-' n ortunities that he asked to be protected from j v icm. There was one member of the bar? I e who had acted as his counsel?who really ti elieved that Durand had not intended to kill h Ir. Thorold. His idea was, that having as- h ;nded by means of the ladder to Miss Thor- ti Id's room, he had been surprised there by ' c er father; and to prevent the latter from j s inking a disturbance he had caught up the ; n lg nearest at hand, which happened to be t v liss Thorold's handkerchief, and emptied a v ottle of chloroform into it, which she was in j lj le habit of using to stifle moths, beetles and j c ther insects she collected and preserved ; and | i iat he had then pressed this on Mr. Thor-! 1 Id's face, thus causing his death. When he j f iggestcd this to the condemned man, the ' v utter denied, as persistently as he had done til along, that he had ever seen or heard of VIr. Thorold, and nothing could induce him o change his story. Difficult as it was to loubt of Durand's guilt, this persistency was tot without its usual effect; and in the end here was not wanting those who petitioned hat his life might be spared on the ground uggested by his counsel. His good mein was mother recommendation in his favor; and it vas generally felt that if Miss Thorold had :ome forward and acknowledged that he had iscended to her room with her consent, the souvicted man might have escaped with a :oruparatively light punishment. The symlathv which would have been felt for him vas, however, checked by the suspicion that iliss Thorold had met with the same fate as ler father. Nevertheless some efforts were nade in his behalf to procure a mitigation of >unishment, on the ground that he had not ntended to do more than reduce Mr. Thorold o insensibility while he made his escape with lis daughter; the ultimate effect of which vas, that his sentence was commuted totransjortation for life. It so happened, that in this particular iutance a discovery was actually made a few nonths after the trial, which established his nnocence as regarded Miss Thorold. The icir of Laverstock Grange did not come to ive there until after he had made a long tour in the continent with his family ; and in the ngantime the place was shut up. Before his etum, the junior partner of the firm who nanaged the estate was requested to go down ind superintend the renovations, and to see hat everything was put into proper order. Things were restored to their old footing; that s to say, men who were sent to do other work, vere brought back to work in the garden, the hrubberics, and so forth; and among them vas one whose duty it had been to take care if the ice-house. This was a cave in the tliick:st part of the shrubbery, excavated deep in he earth, the entrance to which was reached >y descending a long ladder. Taking a lanern with him, the man entered the cave to iscertain what quantity of ice remained in it, md directly afterward he began to cry out or heln. Some men workine in the shrubbe y heard his cries, and hastened to the spot. L'hey found him making frantic efforts to ilimb the ladder ; but so great was his terror, hat he had not strength to ascend it. To heir inquiries of what was the matter, he kept epeating, "Miss Thorold! Miss Thorold!" The men being in sufficient number to give iach other courage, went down to his assisance ; and on entering the ice-house they saw diss Thorold crouching on the ice in one corler, her eyes wide open, and her appearance o much like that of a living being, that they :alled to her by name several times before hey ventured to touch her. The medical nan who saw her, before she was removed rom this place, was of opinion that her death vas caused by excitement, or by ihe extreme old of the ice-house, and not by starvation. The supposition was, that in the frenzy of lorror and terror she had lost her intellect, ,nd had descended the ladder by which Duand had mounted to her room, and in trying o bury herself in the shrubbery she had ta:en the path which led to the ice-house, and lad either fallen down the hole, or gSt down he ladder, and, thinking only of concealing lerself, had scrambled over the fern-covered ce to the furthest corner of the cave, where he had been frozen to death* All this came to our knowledge the next ime we traveled the circuit, but Durand was, iy that time, as we supposed, making his way n Australia, and nobody seemed to think it k'orth while to make any enquiries about him, nth a view to procure further mitigation of lis punishment. Very soon after thi?, conceiving that ray uccess at the English bar was not in proporion to my merits, I determined on going to iractice in New South Wales, at that time iot overstocked with workmen in our profusion. Having one day seen a paragraph in an English newspaper which related that Duand, the murderer of Mr. Thorold, had disppeared from the penal settlement to which ie had been consigned in a perfectly unacountable manner, 1 took it into my head one aorning to ask an old convict who was emdoyed about the court house, if he knew of he arrival of such a person in the colony, ^he ouestion was asked without the remotest dea he could answer it; in fact, it was from uere idleness at the moment, and almost inoluntarily. To my utter surprise, before the Id man had time to ransack his memory for u answer, I saw a man rising from a seat ear my right hand whom I recognized as "esse Durand. His appearance was so much ltered by the concealment of a great part of lis face with a thick mass of hair, that if my aind had not been occupied at the momeut nth the recollection of him, I do not think I hould have recognized him. I beckoned to iim as he was leaving the court, and he stood till till I joined him. The thing was altoether so sudden in its occurrence that I had mt time to think, and my first question was, Have you heard that Miss Thorold was disovered ?" He seemed to expect some such question, or he answered as readily as though he had een waiting for it, "Yes, but you must misake me for my brother." The reply was carcely uttered when he began to stammer ut an unintelligible explanation, which was o contradictory that my inability to compreend his meaning, which was the real cause f my silence, seemed to convince him that I oust be acquainted with all the facts, which, t that moment I certainly was not. By browing out a remark calculated to strengthn this impression, he made other admissions, ,'hich led me to the conclusion that Durand's ounsel was right in his conjecture as to the artly accidental death of Mr. Thorold, but ,'rong as to the person who caused it. This narrative has already extended to too reat a length to allow of my giving a full tatement of what I learned respecting this relarkable case of mistaken identification, esse Durand was the twin brother of James )uraud, and the resemblance between them ,'as so extraordinary, that even persons intinately acquainted with the family were unaile to distinguish them apart. Their characers, however bore little similarity with each ther. Jesse was well-conducted, and altoether superior to the average of young men, Deluding his brother James. The attachr?nr? + Kr/Atl*orc wna rnmorlrnMu afrnnnr nit Jesse's love for his brother was of that lanly, self-sacrificing character, which would iiduce him to hear any amount of suffering o shield his brother from punishment. Just previous to the occurrence of the event r'hich had brought Jesse so near to a disraceful end, James had been engaged in some rausactions in shares with a person who, taing advantage of his inexperience in such latters, had made him legally responsible for ,'hat, in fact, be had derived no benefit from, t was to warn liitn that a lawyer was instruced to bring a criminal charge to hear upon im to extort this money, that Jesse had foliiwed him to an obscure inn at Wolverhampon, where he had gone from Scarborough, in onsequeuce of an intimation from another ource as to what was impending, Having otliing to do at this place, he acted on an initation he had received from Miss Thorold, villi whom he had made acquaintance atScarlorough, and had afterward carried 011 a seret correspondence. Leaving his bag at the un (in which Jesse had found the packet of etters, from one of which he had got the inbrmation as to the locality where his brother ?as lobe found,) he arranged to meet Miss ' Thorold on the night when the sad catastroi phe I have described took place. While talking to Miss Thorold her father had suddenly ' entered the room, and the expression of his ! face was so threatening, that Durand, fearing what might happen to her if he left his daugh| ter in his power, suddenly determined on taj king her away with him, though he was far : from desiring to encumber himself in such a i way at such a time. The mode in which he acted, and his intention, was exactly imagined I by his brother's counsel, and be was almost j frightened to death when he saw the change ; that had come over the old man's face as lie I lowered him to the ground. After listening I outside the door for an instant, he took the j light and.carried it into Mr. Thorold's room, , and then went back to fetch the body. He : carried it in and laid it on the bed, and then j crept back to Miss Thorold's room, but she [ had disappeared. Not believing that Mr. Thorold would remain insensible long, alter waiting a few minutes, he went down the ladder, and looked about for her, but not seeing her, he thought she might have gone to the servant's room for help. Taking the ladder, he ran to the tree where he had found it, and thrust it beneath the branches, and then hurried away. He had not the slightest snspipicion that his brother Jesse was in the neighborhood seeking him, and only thought of getting out of the way for a time. He made his way to Bristol, thence to Wales, where he stayed some time, and finally crossed to America. From that country he wrote repeatedly to his brother without receiving an answer, and at last ventured to write to an old friend of his family. She, however, being an old lady living in London, who never saw the newspapers, and being quite unknown to the acquaintances of the young man, could only reply that she had I not seen his brother since she last saw him | (James,) and had been greatly troubled by | their disappearance. He let the matter drop for a time, but at last he wrote in a fcigued hand to a person who knew them, and requested him to tell him the present address of Jes se Durand. The only answer he received was a newspaper, giving an account of the trial, and another stating that the sentence had been commuted to transportation. He directly returned to England, with the intention of giving himself up to procure his brother's release, but his heart failed him. Instead of sacrificing himself, he thought he would try if he could aid his brother to escape. In this he was successful, and at the time we met they were occupying a largesheep farm about forty miles from Sydney. IpswlInuMusi ftradiug. THE KU-KLUX PROSECUTIONS. important letter from gen. kershaw. Camden, S. C., August 4 1873. Maj. James F. Hart?Dear Sir: In accordance with the request of citizens of York and other counties concerned, communicated through yourself in person, I proceeded to Washington on the 23rd ultimo, and the day following waited on Attorney-General Williams, in company with Hons. W. D. Porter and R. M. Sims?your commissioners?and Hon. Plato Durham, of North Carolina, and Major S. A. Durham, of Marion county in this State, who met us at Washington, and warmly interested themselves in promoting the success of our negotiations. Mr. Williams received us with kindness and courtesy, and promptly assured us that the Government entertained and had already acted upon a policy that looked to the relief of those implicated in, or charged with violations of the enforcement acts, with the exception of those charged with participation in acts of violence resulting in loss of life, or other cases of special aggravation, of which excepted cases he believed there were very few. He seemed readily to accept our assurances that the ends of the enforcement laws had been fully attained in South Carolina, and that the organizations which they were intended to suppress did not now exist, and would not be permitted to revive, because our own people were fully alive to the necessity of protecting society against the consequences which they knew would inevitably follow any such revival. We were also encouraged by Mr. Williams in our purpose of presenting the subject to the President in person, in pursuance of which design, Messrs. Porter, Sims and I went to Long Branch, where we were promptly and courteously accorded an interview at an early hour Saturday morning, with a result which to us appeared very gratifying, if not satisfactory. The President spoke earnestly, freely and kindly, readily accepting such suggestions as it seemed to us proper to make as to the mode | of expressing his purpose of leniency, so as best to allay the anxiety of those interested. | He said substantially? 1. That he would direct the discontinuance j of the prosecutions pending here, except where I they involved the ingredients of active particI inat.ion in murder or other violent outrage. 2. That no new prosecutions for past offenses would be commenced, except in that class of cases above excepted. 3. That refugees returning, would not be I molested, unless of the above excepted class. 4. He proposed, in order to restore perfect confidence to those whom he intended to relieve, to designate the excepted persons by name. 5. That all under sentence would be par! doned at once, except active participators in J murder or other violent outrage, as above { excepted, or those against whose release some good, specific cause might be assigned. 6. That the excepted class might, and i probably would, receive further consideration | hereafter. 7. That he would write at once to the At1 torney-General, conveying to him the proper ' instructions. Assuring the President that such a policy j would be productive of the happiest effect, we ! took our leave and returned to Washington, i where we again saw the Attorney-General. ; We stated to him the substance of our inter| view with the President, and he informed us ! that he had received a note from him, from i which he read a paragraph, which seemed to ; embody the points as above indicated, i Mr. Williams took no exception to the polj icy expressed by the President, but said it I was what he had before understood to be the : determination of the Government in relation ; to this subject in South Carolina and some : other States ; that it was not practicable to ! name the persons to be excepted from the i proposed acts of clemency; that he had not 1 ? o i* I ./? I. 1 the necessary iniormation uciore mm, aim ! might do great injustice to individuals,should | he attempt it; that he would, however, endeavor so to indicate the excepted class that no one concerned could fail to determine his position in relation thereto. ! We handed Mr. Williams a note, heretofore published, the purpose of which was to draw from him officially a written declaration of the clemency proposed to be extended, and received his answer the next day, which was immediately published. We have felt, in regard to this letter of Mr. Williams, that the expressions used are so general, and its tone so guarded, that unless explained, it will fail of effecting all the benefit which we had hoped from its promulgation. Wc have felt that it was due to the unfortunates most nearly concerned that they should have the opportunity of considering it in the light of the verbal declarations of pol\ icy and purpose which it was intended to 1 generalize. We doubt not that the instructions to the ' District Attorney will be quite specific ; but i it is due to all concerned that they should ! ' perfectly comprehend the limits proposed to | i be placed by the Government upon its act of i grace. The purpose of this communication is j chiefly to give them and the public all the | light that may be afforded by a review of the 1 j conversations had with the President and the ; Attorney-General. It will be seen that Mr. Williams designates the excepted class as cases of "great aggrava-1 tion" This expression is susceptible of a con-1 struction that would exclude a very large 1 number of persons from the clemency really j intended to be extended by the President, if it stood alone. Mr. Williams himself did not! ' * ?- 1 ! employ tnese woraa in any very uumpieueu- j sive sense, because he immediately qualifies i their generality by saying, "There are, how- j ever, but a few of such cases now within my \ knowledge." We understood the President to use the ex-1 pression already quoted, when he designated j the class of cases excepted?that is, "murder or other violent outrage." We did not call up-; on hina to define more closely, because he then proposed to remove all misunderstanding of j terms, by naming the persons excepted. In the paragraph of the President's letter to Mr. Williams, read to us at our last interview, I think the expression employed to designate j this excepted class, was substantially "cases of murder or violence resulting in loss of life." Considering the scope and tone of the conversations had with the President and the Attorney-General, the kind expressions used by both, aud especially by the President in relation to the sufferers and the evident desire to invite the return of absentees, to relieve anxieties and to restore confidence and good feeling, I have no hesitation in saying that, in my opinion, the proposed relief will be found to embrace all but those who have been charged with direct participation in "murder, or violence resulting in loss of life," which is, as I have said, the felicitous and unambiguous expression of the President in his note to Mr. Williams, as I remember it. In conclusion, I deem it due to the Hon. F. A. Sawyer to say that we were much indebted to him for facilitating our approach to the Attorney-General, and for other courtesies. Hoping that your citizens may derive much relief from our efforts, and that a new policy | may henceforth be pursued in relation to those in whose behalf these efforts have been employed; that all your exiled citizens may soon be restored to their families, their friends and their industries ; that your section may soon resume a career of peace and prosperity, based upon the harmonious cooperation of all your citizens, I am, very trulv yours, J. B. KERSHAW. correspondence between tiie commissioners and tiie attorney-general. Washington, July 30,1873. Hon. George H. Williams, Attorney-General. Sir: After our conference with you we proceeded to Long Branch, and were promptly accorded an interview with General Grant, which was in all respects cordial aud satisfactory. The President expressed views of clemency similar to those previously expressed by you, and said he would address you a note defining the present policy of the Government * * ? i 11 _ n /? in relation to prosecutions unaer tne umiorcement Act. We beg to renew the suggestions already made that the purposes of the Government in the premises be made public, so that all concerned, particularly the refugees, may have authentic information from proper official source, by which they may be able to govern themselves. Such official announcement will, in our opinion, produce a great sense of relief. We are, with great respect, your obedient servants, (Signed) W. D. PORTER, J. B. KERSHAW, W. R. M. SIMS. Department of Justice, Washington, July 31, 1873. j To Messrs. Porter, Kershaw and Sims: Gents: Your letter of yesterday, intended to elicit from me a public expression of the policy of the Government "in-relation to the prosecutions and prisoners under the Enforcement Acts," is received. I have to say in answer, as that indicated in his conversation with you, the President has communicated to me what I have heretofore understood to be his wish, that the persons accused and convicted of offenses under said Acts should be treated with as much lenity as possible, without prejudice to the ends for which they were passed. It must, however, Le distinctly understood that this action by the Government is hot I prompted by any doubt as to the necessity or | validity of said Acts, or of the necessity and 'justice of the convictions already had under [ them to prevent and punish high crimes, but | by the belief that the ku-klux klans have, ; through said convictions, been almost if not altogether broken up, and that those who were concerned in or sympathized with them have come to see the folly, wickedness and danger of such organizations. I You have been pleased to say to me, and j similar assurances have been given by others ! seeking the same object, that executive clera| ency at this time in the ku-klux cases would tend to remove many causes of uneasiness and irritation now existing, and conduce generally to the public peace and tranquility; and the proposed action is taken in reference to such cases, with the full expectation that these assurances will be verified. You are informed j that the prosecutions now peuding in thecourts lor violations 01 tne eniorceiuent acts win De suspended or discontinued, and iustructions to that effect have already been given to several District Attorneys, but there may be exceptional cases of great aggravation where the Government will insist upon conviction and i punishment. There are, however, but a few of I such cases now within my knowledge. Persons who have absented themselves on account of their complicity, or supposed complicity, in ku-klux offenses, are at liberty to return,nnd unless theircrimes bring them with! in the above named exceptional cases,they will; , not be prosecuted. Many of those sentenced i j to imprisonment for such offenses have already j : been pardoned, and the cases of the others are j | under consideration, and will probably be dis- j I posed of in like manner, keeping in view the j j proper relation between their punishment and ; ! the nature of their guilt. ; To avoid any misconstruction of these pro- j ; ceedings, it is perhaps necessary for me to \ : say, that all conspiracies and outrages in violation of said acts, hereafter committed, like j ! those heretofore punished, will be prosecuted i j with all possible energy and vigor, and ; it is to be understood that the Government i ; docs not intend to abandon said Acts, but | 1 to induce, if possible, a willing obedience! 1 to their reasonable requirements. Substan- j; tially, they are intended to protect citizens of j i ; the United States in the possession and enjoy-1 I meut of those political and civil rights, guar- j: i autced to them by the Jate amendments to the Constitution ; and the President, whose duty j i it is to see tluft the laws are faithfully executed,' j j would be recreant to that duty, if he did not so administer the Government as to afford to j all citizeus the equal protection of its laws. 1 1 I have added these suggestions to the infor- 1 mation for which you ask, with a sincere hope ! that, by the exercise of a mutual recognition j ! of each other's rights, by all classes of people, j no further necessity will arise for their protec- I * tion and enforcement under said Acts, through j1 the action of the General Government. Very respectfully, OEO. II. WILLIAMS, i ' Attorney-General. I The Battle of the Bullfrogs.?Many of the citizens of Vermont will remember to have seen on one dollar bills of the Windham county State Bank a vignette representing bullfrogs fighting. This was engraved to commemorate the battle of the Bullfrogs. The facts were as follows: "Many years ago, when the town of Windham was newly settled, there came a very dry season. There are two large ponds iu Windham, separated by an intervening strip of land of considerable extent. Each of these ponds was inhabited by a large community of the reptiles above named. The smaller pond dried- up and its inhabitants started in a body for the large pond. They were met jn the intervening space oy me cumraunityfrom the larger pond, and a fierce and long-continued battle ensued between the rival communities. Such was the hideous bellowing of the frogs during their fierce encounter that it alarmed the inhabitants, who at first supposed it to be the whoop of the hostile savages. But curiosity getting the better of their fear, they cautiously proceeded to the spot whence the hideous sound issued, and there beheld the strange spectacle of two immense armies of bullfrogs, covering many acres of ground, engaged in a fierce and deadly battle. This battle continued more than twenty-four hours, and when it was over the ground was literally covered with the slain, and it became necessary, to avoid the noxious effluvia, to gather and bury them.?Boston Transcript. The Way Insurance Policies are Paid. There is probably no business so generally participated in as insurance in which so little is practically known. Many think if they insure a specified property for 85000 and the property is partially or wholly destroyed, that they'recover the full insurance, regardless of the fact that that the prpperty destroyed may not be of half the value. This is a common error, though of course confined to the less informed in such matters. Others, carrying a stock varying in value from $25,000 to 830,000 and an insurance for the smaller sum, suppose that in case of damage by fire, involving a loss of the greater amount, they can recover the entire face of their policies, when, in truth, the insurance companies are liable only pro rata for the loss sustained. If the insurance policies in solvent companies are drawn in plain terms for 825,000 they will cover any loss on stock valued at $30,000 to which they onnlu nn to their full snet>i fixation. But if "itv ?? -? -i they contain what is known as the "average clause," which reads : It is understood and agreed that claims under this policy shall only be for such proportion of the entire loss as the amount of this insurance bears to the whole value of the property insured, then in case of loss on any part .of a $30,000 stock, with $25,000 insurance, the companies will pay five-sixths of the loss and the insured will bear the other sixth himself. These are pieces of information well worth holding in remembrance, especially by the less informed on the subject. ? ? "Father Blackstocks."?One of the traditionary characters of Chester county is "Father Blackstocks." A writer in the Associate Reformed Presbyterian gives the following reminiscence of him: Father Blackstocks, in his old age, used to go the rounds on "Spark," a nice little pony, followed by a boy for company, and to help him forward in his good work. We see him now, in our mind's eye, coming down the lane to father's on "Spark," his feet well thrust through the stirrups, his saddle-bags stuffed and sticking straight out, his beaver crushed in on the sides and set carelessly on his head, his face a deep, dark brown, and not very comely at that, though it is said that he preach ed twice in Greencastle from the text, "I am black but comely, O ye daughters of Jerusalem." The people were amused when he announced the same text after an absence of thirteen years, because, perhaps, he was so black and so homely. But father Blackstocks was a good man, everybody loved him, and then he and father always had a good time, talking and laughing and feasting on the good things that mother served up?of course we were on hand at meal time. Searching tiie world for the Kansas Murderers.?An agent of the Special Detective Agency of New York, is now in Paris in pursuit of the Bender family, who are charged with being the authors of the wholesale murders lately discovered at Cherryville, Kansas. Detectives from the same agency have been sent to London and all the leading European cities. One of the accused, Johanna, or, as she is commonly known, Katie Bender, is quite young, has red hair, and is a person of rather repulsive features, with a furtive and distrustful expression. She was seen on board a steamer that left New York for Havre, and it is supposed that the whole family are at present concealed in the French Capital or in the environs. Katie Bender is possessed of some education, and is said to be able to speak a little French. If they are really in France, now that the police are on their track, it will be impossible for them long to escape detection. It appears that the world is to be ransacked, that these murderers may be found. It is most singular that, with the strongly marked characteristics of this infamous family, they have escaped detection so long. Good Cooking.?It has been practically demonstrated that the .good health of the community depends more upon good cooking than anything else, and yet cooking is the only art that is nowhere systematically taught. More practical lessons in our private schools for girls in this line would be an advantage. Home education by competent heads of families on the subject is also very desirable. If a large portiou of the attention given to dress, of which there is now an over and silly abundance, was directed to the careful study and practice of cooking, so as to attain to excellence and economy in the art, good health would be promoted. Good dispositions would -1 naturally follow ; for dyspepsia, engendered from badly cooked food, would no longer beget bad temper, and the peace of the household and happiness of the family be greatly improved. The Narrow Gauge.?A writer in the New York Financier says that the difference between the cost of narrow gauge railroads aud ordinary four feet eight and a half inch gauge is rather more than most people imagine. There are now fifteen narrow gauge railroads in operation in the United States, having seven hundred miles of track, and there are no less than twenty organizations and twelve hundred and fifty miles under process of construction. The roads have been planned and constructed in the past two years. The cost through a level country is about $10,000 a mile, including equipment of rolling stock, while the broad gauge costs from t>3o,UUU to S4U.UUU per mile. Save a Mother's Tears.?Not loug ago two friends were sitting together, engaged in letter writing. One was a young man from India, the other a female friend, part of whose family resides in that far-off laud. The former was writing to his mother in India. When the letter was finished, his friend offered to inclose it in hers, to save postage. Phis he politely declined, saying, "If it be sent separately, it will reach her sooner than if sent through a friend, and perhaps it would save ber a tear." His friend was touched with his tender regard for his mother's feelings, t. md felt, with him, that it was worth paying die postage to save his mother a tear!